Track-gripping device for railway-cars



(No Model.)

L. B; WHITE. TRACK GRIPPING DEVICE FOR RAILWAY CARS. No. 350,090. Patented Sept. 28, 1886.

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UNITED STATES PATENT @rrrcs.

LEVIS P). \VHITE, OF NIHV YORK, f. Y., ASSltlNt it TO LEON Allllhl'll, Oh JERSEY CITY, NlHV JERSEY.

TRACK-GRIPPING DEVICE FOR RAlLNAY CARS.

[.BPECIE'ICAIION forming part of Letters Patent No. 350,090, dated Septe- Application tiled February (I, 1996.

To all "whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LEWIS B. \Vnrrn, a cil izen ot' the United States, and a resident ol'the city of New York, inv the county of NewYork and State of New York, have invented certain new and usel'ul Improvements in Track-Gripping Devices for Railway-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a new and improved attachment for cars for the purpose of firmly gripping the tracks whenever desired, so as to stop the car and hold it in place on a level. or incline.

The invention consists in gri ppi ng-jaws held above the rail and operated either by compressed air, steam, or by levers, and will be .l'ully described and set forth hercinaiter, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side View of a part of a car provided with my improved rail-gripping device, parts be- Fig. 2 is a ci-osssectional view ot' my improved railgripping device, the jaws being above the rail. Fig. 3 is a similar view showing thejaws on the rail.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

The two vertical guides A are held a short distance above one rail, and are secured on the lower ends of the inclined bars or braces A, having their upper ends secured to the under side of the car 13, or to a frame on the same, said guides A being united at their up per ends by a cross-piece, C, bolted to the same. Each guide A is provided in its inner side with a longitudinal guide-groove, 1), into which the ends of the bolt or pivot E are passed, which is thus guided to move vertically between the guides A, and on said bolt or pivot 1* the jaws or blocks F are mounted to swing toward and from each other, the upper ends of said jaws or blocks F being rounded to form cams F, on which a wedge-shaped piece or head, G, rests, secured on the lower end of piston-rod H, secured to a piston, J, in the cylinder K, held by bars L on the frame on the under side of the car. The piston-rod H passes through an aperture in the cross-piece C. To the wedge-shaped head G links M are pivoted, provided attheir lower ends with.

Serial No, 190.905, (No modeLl longitudinal slots M, through which the pins N project from the slides of the blocks or jaws 11. The pipes O and 1 conduct the compressed air into the top and bottom of the cylinder, said pipes O and 1 being connected wit h a pipe, Q, connected with the compressedair tank R. In some cases it will be necessary to operate the rod H by means of levers insteadof compressed air; and to permit of this the angular levers a. are pivoted to the pieces I) of the l'rame on the under side of the car, said angle-levers having their outer ends con nected with rods (1, extending to the ends of thccar, and having their outer ends connected to chains secured to brake-shafts ot the usual construction. The inner or adjacent ends of the angle-levers are provided with longitudinal slots N, through which pins k pass into the upper part of the piston-rod H, which upper end of the piston-rod in this case is passed through a stut'ling box in the top of the cylinder.

In place of connecting the rods (I to the chains and brake-shafts,they maybe connected with suitable levers or other devices l'or operating the same. The jaws or blocks 1. are provided in their lower ends with recesses, the contours of which are so shaped as to adapt them to lit snugly on the head of the rail T.

The operation is as follows: \Vhen the device is not used for gripp'ingthe rail, the jaws or blocks F are raised, and are maintained in raised position by compressed air admitted into the lower part of the cylinder K and pressing the piston J upward. \Vhen it is desired to grip the rail, the compressed air is permitted to escape from the lower part of the cylinder K, and compressed air is admitted into the upper part of the cylinder, whereby the piston J is forced down, as are also the jaws F, until they rest on the rail. T. The. piston-rod l'I, however, continues to descend, and, as its wedge-shaped head S acts on the upper cam end, 8, ol' the blocks or jaws IF, it forces them from each other, whereby the lower ends of the jaws or blocks are pressed firmly against the sides of the head of the rail T, which is thus held so firmly that theblocks cannot slide or slip on the same, and thus any movement of the car is prevented. Vhen it is desired to release the car, compressed air is admitted into the lower part of the cylinder and forces the piston J and the piston-rod H upward. The wedge-shaped head is firstlifted from the cam ends Fof the jaws F. The links M swing the upper ends of the jaws toward each other, thereby moving the lower ends from the sides of the rail-head, and then the links M raise the jaws clear of the rail. It

.may happen that the compressed-air device fails to operate, and in such cases the gripping device can be operated by drawing the rods (1 in the direction toward the ends of the car by means of any suitable device, as by such movement of the rods the piston-rod H is moved downward and the jaws operatein the manner set forth.

The above-described gripping device may be used on any railway. adapted to stop and hold a train on anincline, or during rainy or snowy weather when the rails are slippery and the wheels which are held by the brake-shoes are apt to slip on the rails.

One or more of the above-described devices may be provided on each car.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination, with pivoted jaws serving to clamp a rail, of a piston-rod for operating on said jaws. a piston on the piston'rod, and a cylinder in which the piston is contained, substantially as shown and described.

2. A car having vertical guides a short distance above a rail, track-gripping jaws sliding between the guides, and mechanism for operating the jaws, substantially as set forth.

3. A car provided with guides a short dis tance above a rail ,track-gripping j aws mounted to slide between said guides, a wedge-shaped head which can act on the jaws,links connecting the head with the jaws, and of a rod for oper- It is especially 1 ating said wedge-shapcd head, substantially as shown and described.

4. The combination, with a car, of guides secured on the same and held a short distance above a rail, a bolt or pivot mounted to slide in grooves of said guides, track-gripping jaws mounted to swing on said bolt or pivot, and of mechanism for operating the jaws, substantially as shown and described.

- 5. The combination, with a car, of a trackgripping device, a cylinder, a piston in the cylinder, a piston-rod on the piston, which piston-rod operates the t1'ack-gripping device, and levers connected with the piston-rod, for the purpose of operating said rod independent of the piston and cylinder, substantially as shown and described.

6. The combination, with a car, of a trackgripping device, mechanism for operating the gripping device by compressed air, and levers for operating the piston-rod of the compressedair mechanism, independent of the said compressed-air mechanism, substantially as shown and described.

7, The combination, with a car, of a track' gripping device, a cylinder, a piston in the same, a piston-rod on the piston, a wedgeshaped head on the lower end of the-piston for operating the gripping device, and levers connected with the upper end of the pistonrod above the top of the cylinder and rods connected with said levers, sul'istantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signed my name in pres ence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEWIS B. XVHZTE. W'ituesses:

OSCAR F. GUNZ, M. D. VAN BUREN. 

